[Born in Ireland, 1769. Died at Walmer Castle, 1852. Aged 83.]
The third son of the Earl of Mornington, and of Anna, daughter of
Viscount Dungannon. Received his early education at Eton--then studied
at the military school of Angers, in France; and in 1787, entered an
infantry regiment as Ensign. Later became by purchase Lieutenant-Colonel
of the 33rd, and in that regiment took part in Holland in the campaign
of 1794. His first great military exploit was at the beginning of the
century, in India, where his brother was Governor-General, and where,
fighting in the war against the Mahrattas, he annihilated at Assaye an
army of 60,000 men, with only 12,000 troops. From this period until his
defeat of the French army, and the overthrow of Napoleon on the field of
Waterloo (1815), his career was a series of triumphs. Many comparisons
have been made between Napoleon and Wellington; all are unnecessary, and
from the purpose. There is no resemblance whatever in the two
characters. If it is contended that Napoleon was the greatest military
hero of his time, it is sufficient for the admirers of Wellington to
state, that after the English captain had beaten, one upon another, the
great Marshals of Napoleon, he conquered Buonaparte himself, and put an
end for ever to his splendid authority and terrible misrule. Madame de
Staël has said, speaking of Wellington, that “Never was so great a man
made out of such small materials.” Another writer has remarked, that in
him “common sense amounted to genius.” A third tells us that he
accomplished everything by that system of self-subjugation which made
every wish, desire, aim, and object of life subordinate to a paramount
and an ever-present sense of duty. We may gather a notion of the true
character of Wellington from such criticism. There was nothing brilliant
and overpowering in his genius; but he commanded respect, and won
greatness by the wisdom of his combinations, the steadiness of his will,
the simplicity of his aim, and the pertinacity of his course--his mind
being once made up as to the direction to be taken. Wellington had
boundless influence over his men, because he had irresistible power over
himself. He knew better than any other great captain what not to do: and
having resolved upon the propriety of inaction, no consideration, no
amount of obloquy, blame, or reproach, could incite him into action.
When he undertook command in Portugal, it was his conviction that the
enemy were to be finally defeated by a passive policy on his part at
starting. For months, against general opinion, he persisted in that
policy; and after it had succeeded beyond all expectation, once a-foot,
he advanced resolutely with his troops, scoured Portugal and Spain,
drove the French before him, followed them into France, and never
slackened until he had caught Napoleon, and chained him to the rock of
St. Helena. Into the field of politics Wellington brought the same
policy to play. He knew when to act on the defensive, how long he might
defend with safety, when it was prudent to retreat or capitulate upon
honourable conditions. The life of Wellington, from his boyhood until
his death, is an instructive lesson for his countrymen. His daily
habits, as we all know, were of the simplest; and his business-like
activity was the most remarkable characteristic of his old age. In
manners Wellington was soldierly and rough, but he was fond of children.
He had few intimate male friends, but he has left behind him a
correspondence that shows the delight he took in opening his mind
freely, on the most delicate questions of State policy, to more than one
of the gentler sex. A great contemporary poet, a friend and warm admirer
of Wellington, has said that this illustrious, and in many respects
perfect man, had one infirmity that brought him down to the level of us
all--“he could be angry.”
[By Henry Weigall. This was the last bust for which the Duke sat. It
was modelled in four sittings, the dates of which were August 6, 9,
11, and November 18, 1851.]
459A. ARTHUR, DUKE OF WELLINGTON. _Soldier and Statesman._
[Colossal Bust presented by the sculptor, H. Ross.]